A National Research Council steering committee that is advising NASA on innovative technologies for future missions is holding its first public meeting Jan. 26 and 28 in Washington, D.C. The committee and six panels will provide recommendations to NASA to help chart a course for technologies and concepts that could benefit future earth and space science missions and also contribute to critical national and commercial needs in space technology.

Over the course of the study, the committee and panels will review 14 draft NASA technology “road maps” and solicit input from the public, theaerospace community, agencies, and policymakers. At this meeting, committee chair Raymond S. Colladay, president of RC Space Enterprises Inc., and other committee members and panelists will hear from invited speakers, develop criteria for prioritizing technologies, and begin planning a series of public workshops to be held over the next several months.

DETAILS:

The steering committee and panels will meet from 8:30 a.m. to noon on Jan. 26and from 8:30 a.m. to noon on Jan. 28 at the Georgetown Hotel and ConferenceCenter, 3800 Reservoir Road, N.W., Washington, D.C. Seating is limited and reporters who wish to attend should contact the Office of News and Public Information, 202-334-2138 or e-mail news@nas.edu. A complete agenda can be found at http://www8.nationalacademies.org/cp/meetingview.aspx?MeetingID=4913&MeetingNo=1.